


Like Home

by posingasme



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Brother Feels, Childhood Memories, Gen, M/M, Police Officer Castiel, Protective Castiel, Protective Dean Winchester, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-15
Updated: 2017-01-15
Packaged: 2018-09-17 13:24:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9326702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/posingasme/pseuds/posingasme
Summary: Some people subconsciously look for a partner who reminds them in some way of someone who was very important to them in childhood. It's not so subconscious for Sam.





	

Sam watched his husband peel off his uniform piece by piece, and sighed happily. “I'm glad you're home.”

Castiel glanced at him in surprise. “I thought you were asleep, my love.”

“I never sleep well until you're home safe and sound.”

“I know.” He leaned into the bed to kiss Sam's lips lightly. “I'm here now. Get some rest.”

“Did you eat?”

Castiel smiled. “I'm fine. Thank you. Sleep. It's late, Sam.”

The large man settled into the blankets contentedly. “It's easier to sleep when you're in bed,” he pressed. 

His husband snickered, but he surrendered and sat beside him to stroke his soft hair from his eyes. “I'm sure I smell like sweat and coffee.”

Sam took a long deep breath, and let his eyes close. “Smells like home to me.”

“Only because you so often keep me from showering after work that you've gotten used to the stench.”

He didn't open his eyes, but he wrinkled his nose. “I was being romantic, jackass.”

The soft chuckle accompanied Castiel into the bathroom, and Sam could hear the familiar sounds of his lover showering, then shaving and brushing his teeth. 

Sleep gnawed at him, and he dozed, but smiled again as Castiel slipped into the bed beside him silently. Warm skin and hard muscle curled around him like a protective layer. “I love you, angel,” he breathed into the man's neck. 

“Shh,” Castiel soothed. “Just let me hold you. Sleep, baby.”

He didn't know what it was about his husband's presence and his voice which made Sam feel so completely safe and secure. As a younger man, Sam might have scoffed at the idea that he would one day appreciate a protective partner. As large and strong as he was himself, why should he ever need such a thing? But those thoughts had long since dissolved with maturity. Strength and security were two completely different things, and now that he had lived in the comfort of his angel’s wings for years, he knew what it was to have both. 

Castiel was a natural protector. He came from a military family, had joined the Air Force immediately after college, then had moved on to law enforcement after being wounded in action in Afghanistan. His plane been downed by rocket launchers, and his copilot Anna Milton had been lost. Castiel had been medaled, and honorably discharged, and sent home to recover. The moment he had been able to do so, he had applied for jobs with local law enforcement agencies. 

Sam heard the soft purr of his husband's snore begin, and he smiled to himself. It was his favorite music to sleep by. Only when he could feel the tiny rumble in Castiel's chest did Sam's brain and heart accept that all was right with the world, and let him rest. 

***

“Dude!”

Dean snorted awake and turned to glare at his brother. He threw the wayward pillow back across the room. “What?” he demanded. 

The kid in the next bed huffed irritably. “You're snoring! I can't sleep when you're snoring!”

“Shut up. Put the damn pillow over your head instead of tossing it at me then! Do it again, and I'll put it over your face!”

Sam gave a sort of growl and flipped onto the other side with his back to Dean. “I hate sharing space with you. You're obnoxious.”

“Yeah, well, you're gassy! Half a burrito and you're toxic!”

“I get old enough, I'm on my own, and I'm never sharing a room with anybody ever again.”

“Good luck getting laid.”

“You're so gross. Just shut up so I can sleep.”

Dean sighed and stared up at the dark ceiling. He could hear one of the other guys coughing in the next room down. The walls were too thin in this place. He hated it. If it weren't for Sam…

He squeezed his eyes closed. 

It wasn't worth daydreaming about running. He couldn't run with Sam, and he wouldn't run without him. And that wasn't Sam's fault. But some nights, he sure would like to blame the little shit. 

Now that he was awake, there was no chance of him falling back to sleep. He would just snore and wake up Sam again anyway. He waited till he heard the younger boy’s breathing even out, and then he crept out of bed. 

He hadn't done any homework anyway. Maybe he should. He slipped out of the room and down the hall to the living area. After pulling his backpack out of his designated spot, he rummaged through it for his literature notebook. 

“Whatcha working on?”

Dean looked up and frowned. “Go back to bed. They catch you up, they'll give you trouble.”

Sam yawned and sat on the couch, tucking his feet up under him. “You too.”

“I don't care.”

“Then what makes you think I care?”

Dean smirked at that, but shook his head. “Because you're a little nerd like that.”

“They let us keep our bags in our room at that last place.”

He stared hard at the vocabulary list in his notebook. “It doesn't matter. They just want to be sure we aren't sneaking stuff.”

“You do sneak stuff.”

“But not in my bag. Think I'm going to let them find my knife?”

Sam yawned again. “And food.”

Dean scowled. He stole food and hoarded it every place they went, ever since that one place where they had punished Sam for backtalk by letting him go hungry. Dean had never felt so angry and so helpless in his life, and he was determined to never feel that way again. He had given up his own food until they had fed Sam again, just because he couldn't swallow anything he knew his brother needed. Dean was older now, and there would never be another time when Sam went hungry. Not on his watch. 

And Dean was always watching. 

This place wasn't so bad. They had been in worse places. Better ones too, no question, but this place could be worse. For one thing, Dean hadn't had to punch any guy for bothering Sam yet. And Sam hadn't had to show anyone that he could defend himself just fine when big brother wasn't around. So that was a plus. 

“I like food,” Dean grunted finally. 

Sam snorted at him, but he could feel the kid’s smile. He knew why Dean always kept provisions. 

“Why are you even awake? I figured you'd be enjoying having the room to yourself.” It came out a little more sour and resentful than he had meant for it to. 

Amusement dissolved from Sam's face, and he shrugged and looked away. “I didn't mean it, you know.”

A sigh of relief and release of tension in his shoulders was all Dean allowed. 

“Come back to bed. You know I can't sleep without your obnoxious snoring.” With that, Sam stood and crept back to their room noiselessly. 

Dean grinned to himself. That kid frustrated the hell out of him, but he was everything good in his world. 

***

Castiel cleared his throat, and could tell he had been snoring again. He swallowed hard and sighed. “Sorry, my love,” he murmured. “Snoring.”

He could hear the fondness in his husband's voice when he responded. “It's okay. Sounds like home to me,” Sam assured him.

**Author's Note:**

> I might revisit this one day, but for now, hope you like the teensy ficlet. Comments are sweet!
> 
> ~Posing


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